Dell Reports Earning, Revenue Loss in Fourth Quarter

By Scott Ferguson |
Posted 03-01-2007

Dell, which has watched as other PC vendors continue to take away its market share, wrapped up a difficult financial period March 1 by announcing that its net income for the fourth fiscal quarter dropped 33 percent year-over-year.

In addition to its income, the Round Rock, Texas, PC maker reported that its earnings of 30 cents per share were 30 percent below its earnings of a year ago, when the company posted earnings of 43 cents a share. Revenue also fell about 5 percent from $15.2 billion in 2006 to 14.4 billion in 2007
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For the quarter, which ended Feb. 2, the company's net income stood at $673 million compared to the $1.01 billion Dell earned during the same time in 2006. Analysts polled by Thomson Financial called for earnings per share of 29 cents and revenue of $14.9 billion.

The company did not have a customary call with analysts to discuss its results, but Michael Dell, in a statement, said he was disappointed with the results and that his company is working on improving its financial picture.

"We are systematically moving to increase efficiencies, improve execution and transform the company," Dell said in the statement. "Our business model will become more aligned with the needs of our customers, which will improve their experience and yield improved growth and profitability for the long term."

As problems continue with its own internal and accounting practices, Dell said that it may have to restate its earnings at another time. The company did not provide any additional revenue or income forecasts. Wall Street analysts have called for Dell to earn 28 cents a share in the first fiscal quarter with revenues of $14.3 billion.

The last few months have brought significant changes at Dell.

After watching the company lose market share to its main rival, Hewlett-Packard, Michael Dell stepped back into the role of CEO. On the same day, the company announced that its results would be below the expectations of Wall Street.

Dell has also been involved in an ongoing investigation with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. While the federal agency has not commented on the probe, Dell officials have said that it involved "certain accounting and financial reporting matters, including the possibility of misstatements in prior period financial reports."